Bio-Med Science Academy

Bio-Med Science Academy is a public STEM+M (Science, Technology, Engineering, Mathematics, plus Medicine) school in Portage County, Ohio, United States. The school's original location, now known as the Rootstown campus, is on the campus of Northeast Ohio Medical University (NEOMED) in Rootstown, and houses grades 7 through 12. The school, originally a grades 9–12 high school, has expanded to include lower grade levels, with grades 5 and 6 at its Ravenna campus and grades 2, 3, and 4 at the Shalersville campus. Bio-Med opened as a community charter school in August 2012, but in April 2013 the school received a formal STEM designation for the State of Ohio. This new designation required the closing of the community school which occurred June 30, 2013, and the opening of Bio-Med Science Academy STEM School on July 1, 2013. With its new title it became an official independent and public STEM school.[1]

Bio-Med Science Academy
Address
4209 State Route 44 Rootstown , Ohio 44272 United States
Coordinates	41°06′11″N 81°14′43″W
Information
Funding type	Public
Founded	2012
Chief Administrative Officer	Stephanie Lammlein
Chief Operating Officer/Principal	Lindsey McLaughlin - Upper Academy Charmayne Polen - Lower Academy
Staff	56
Grades	4–12
Enrollment	> 800 (2019–20)
Language	English
Campus	Rural
Color(s)	Lime Green and blue
Team name	Bees
Accreditations	Ohio Department of Education STEM Accreditation
Communities served	Portage County, Northeast Ohio
Affiliation	Northeast Ohio Medical University
Website	biomedscienceacademy.org
Main entrance, 2015

The academy began with an initial freshmen class of 70 students. 119 students were admitted for the 2013–14 academic year, 109 were accepted for the 2014–15 year and 110 for the 2015–16 year.[2] For the 2017–18 school year, Bio-Med expanded to grades 6–12 with the opening of the Lower Academy in Shalersville Township. Total enrollment in the academy now surpasses 800 students from over 41 district across eight counties.[3] There is a 50/50 male to female ratio.[3]

For the 2020–21 year an addition was completed at the Rootstown campus to house 7th and 8th graders who had previously been at the Ravenna campus, making the Shalersville campus open for 2nd, 3rd, and 4th grades while 6th grade was moved to the Ravenna campus with the 5th graders.

The school operates on a year-round academic schedule and is a member of the Akron hub of the Ohio Stem Learning Network.[4] The Upper Academy is housed on the third floor of the NEOMED Education and Wellness (NEW) Center, which opened in August 2014. Previously, the school was located in another part of the NEOMED campus for the first two academic years. Bio-Med Science Academy was granted Ohio STEM designation in April 2013. Within its first year, the school claimed first place at the Regional Engineer Career Day. Bio-Med Science Academy was one of seven schools recognized by Ohio Governor John Kasich in January 2017 as a recipient of the governor's innovation awards.[5]